The Only Way is Down
by temarisgf
Summary: AU. "The way I see it, he could grow up to become our greatest defense... or our worst nightmare. I'm just making sure it won't be the latter." (root!naruto, side naruino)
1. Prologue

Hiruzen untensed his face and looked at Danzo warily. His old friend held his gaze, perpetually unperturbed despite his initial reaction to the man's nonsensical request. Not that he could still call him a friend after he tried to have him assassinated.

"I beg your pardon? You want to take the Fourth's son under your wing?"

Danzo didn't seem intimidated by the harsh, distrusting tone he used as he stepped closer to the desk separating them.

"Yes. I want him to become a Root nin." His almost nonchalant tone had the effect of displeasing the Kage even more.

He slams a hand on his desk. "Are you out of your mind? Can you even fathom what's inside of this child? And you want to bring him into the elite?"

The Root leader narrowed his eyes, taking on an irritated expression. He didn't appreciate Hiruzen talking to him as if he didn't understand the importance of his own plea, as if he just foolishly wandered into his office without considering all variables.

"You told me the Fourth's wife asked you to take care of the child - what's his name again?"

"Naruto."

"Naruto," he repeated. "What do you plan to do with him? Adopt him, or put him in an orphanage until he's old enough to live on his own? Then sign him up at the Academy for free?"

The Third got up from his armchair forcefully and rounded his desk to come face to face with an unimpressed Danzo. Their eyes battled for dominance, challenging the other not to divert his gaze. Without looking away, Hiruzen leaned back against his desk and crossed his arms.

"Mikoto Uchiha offered to take him in. She was Kushina's closest friend and one of the only people who knew about her pregnancy."

Danzo scoffed roughly. "You want to put a jinchuuriki in the hands of Uchihas?! We are on the brink of a civil war and you're considering putting a weapon this powerful in the enemy's grasps?!" He shook his head in mock exasperation. "And you say I'm out of my mind."

"The Uchihas aren't our enemy -"

"Yet,"

"And Naruto's not a weapon! He's an infant, an orphan! He needs a family to accept him because you know damn well the village won't."

"He's not just an infant, Hiruzen. The way I see it, he could grow up to become our greatest defense... or our worst nightmare. I'm just making sure it won't be the latter."

The Hokage clenched his jaw as he seemed to consider the Root leader's words carefully. He couldn't ignore his arguments; there was a very real possibility that Naruto would turn on the village in the future. Whether it's the Kyuubi possessing him - which is the least likely option as Minato had become an expert in sealing jutsu (he did marry an Uzumaki) - or Naruto himself if he's pushed too far by the villagers. They would never accept him, much less love him which is why he was planning on giving him over to Mikoto. After all, if he became a Police nin he wouldn't know whether he was hated for his job or for the demon he harbored.

Maybe... keeping him away from the civilians altogether was the best course of action. Maybe Danzo was right; he usually was. The man _was_ his most important advisor and his guidance often proved to show significant result as well as it prevented precarious situations.

The man in question smirked, discerning the look of acceptance in the Hokage's eyes. He's always been able to manipulate him for some reason, and apparently even an assassination attempt from him wasn't changing that. Was it the guilt of taking away his dream twice, of being the light to his darkness or was Danzo just good with words? He couldn't say.

Either way, he got what he wanted from him again.

He walked away from his rival, glancing back one last time as he opened the door to leave.

"I trust you'll make the right decision."

* * *

"Where is he?! I demand to see him!" Mikoto exclaimed.

Hiruzen kept a blank face, refusing to manifest any emotion, any doubt.

He had just walked into the Uchiha compounds (something a Kage isn't supposed to do - _he_ summons people), looking for the woman to tell her about his decision concerning Naruto. He had anticipated her reaction which didn't make it easier for him to tell her.

Fugaku stood next to his wife, his usual stern look plastered on his face. He wasn't for adopting the jinchuuriki in the first place but he didn't appreciate the Hokage upsetting his wife.

"You said we could keep him. My wife was Kushina's best friend! Surely this is what she would have wanted."

"I said it was a possibility but that I needed time to make a decision." He looked at Mikoto again. "You may have been Kushina's friend, but she entrusted _me_ with her son. I made the decision I deemed was the safest, for the village and for the child."

The woman was holding her own sleeping son in her arms. He started to wake up upon the noise of their dispute and Hiruzen gave him a wry smile when he looked in his direction.

"Listen. You already have your hands full with your own newborn -"

She interrupted him dryly, "His name is Sasuke."

He startled. That was his father's name.

"… I assure you Naruto is in good hands. He's being taken care of by… one of my most trusted friends."

It was a half-lie, half-truth. He did trust Danzo to do what was best for the village but he also didn't trust in his loyalty to him.

Mikoto shook her head sadly as her husband rubbed her back. Fugaku didn't want this stressful situation to take its toll on her. As the Hokage had put it, she had her own children to take care of. But she couldn't just abandon Naruto. She was supposed to be an aunt to him, and Sasuke would have been like a cousin, a brother even. And that was before her best friend died! The logical thing to do now was to become his mother.

But Hiruzen took that away from her and Kushina, and he was the Hokage again, the most powerful person in the village. If he said she couldn't have Naruto, then she must move on from that thought and do her best to take care of him from afar.

"I just want to see him. Can I see him?" Mikoto pleaded.

"Not right now. But you will, I promise you."

A small whine broke the tense atmosphere reigning in on them. The whine soon turned into a louder sound as Sasuke started crying.

"Shhhh," Mikoto started rocking him in her arms. "It's all gonna be okay."

* * *

With a baby in his arms, Danzo paced around in the Root HQ under the eyes of his men. One of them approached him hesitantly.

"Shimura-sama, why are we baby-sitting the jinchuuriki? Couldn't we have left him in the orphanage until he became old enough to train?"

While he was holding the child the way a caring parent would - carefully, supporting the child's small head and neck - there was no warmth or fatherly affection in his eyes when he looked at him. Only greed and satisfaction.

He glanced up to give the ninja interrupting his time with the jinchuuriki a quick look, then kept on pacing around.

"This child. He's like a kinjutsu; strong but volatile, hazardous. We don't want him to ever look anywhere else but towards the Leaf. That's why we need to make him dependant on us, to make us all he knows and trusts so he wouldn't even think of betraying Root. Because betraying Root is betraying Konoha."

He was still reeling from the humiliation from two months ago, when one of his own cheated him, choosing the Hokage over Root and Danzo and revealing his plan to kill Sarutobi.

"So -"

"So I'll change his diapers if I have to, because this is how it's done. This is... conditioning."

The masked Root nodded and excused himself.

Danzo tried to keep his smirk in check as he walked back into his office. For the first time in years, the stars were aligning for him. The most powerful weapon in Konoha- no, in the Shinobi World had fallen into his lap.

Or… it didn't.

He worked for that asset, just like he worked hard for everything else he's ever earned; Root, his position in the Council, the trust of the Elders… Hiruzen's never worked that hard in his life. Everything he has just fell into lap; his family name, his legendary students, his position as Hokage, Danzo's counsel.

He was lucky right from the start, blessed by the stars. Danzo wasn't.

This is what will make it all the more satisfying when he takes his Hokage seat from him. Danzo now has all the cards at hand to start a coup d'état and he won't miss his chance. He will revolutionize Konoha and become its greatest leader even if it takes years.

After all, he was a patient man. He's already waited decades.

It's all written in the stars, they say.

He's never believed in that saying. If it were true, he'd never get the chance to fulfill his ambitions, it just wouldn't be in the cards for him. Nothing is written in the stars, or set in stone and that's the beauty of free will. Fate is a book you write yourself and he intends to write his glory.

* * *

**A/N: hope u liked the prologue!**

**for pairings... i haven't decided yet as this is not a romance fic, but i might do some naruino? idk. narusaku's my otp but i don't see them working out in this. maybe something else, we'll see if people like this first. EDIT: naruino it is.**

**tell me what you think in the reviews, if you think i should continue this!**


	2. The Perks of Being a Jinchuuriki

**Flash-forward: fifteen years laters.**

"It's over, Danzo! Give up! You've got to stop this madness!" Naruto roared, looking up at his former sensei up on the Hogake tower. Ever the symbolist, Naruto thought bitterly.

He didn't let the distant screams of scared villagers distract him. Ino and the others were leading them to safety, allowing him and Danzo not to hold back. It's inevitalble, he will have to go for the kill; if—_when_, Danzo declines his last chance to stop the war, Naruto will have no choice but to end the man's life, as he would never stop until he got what he wanted.

"Haven't I taught you anything, Naruto?" Danzo drawed, his voice deep and scratched. "You never give up!" He screamed, "never! Not until you make it! Not until Konoha thrives again, and the menace is gone!"

"You're the menace, Danzo, don't you see that?! You're not the man you used to be; you would burn Konoha down if it meant you could rule over its ashes! ...You don't care about the people. If you did, you wouldn't be standing over the literal bodies of the ones you swore to protect."

Danzo scoffed, rolling his eyes sarcastically. Naruto was sure his mind was half gone by now.

"I've also taught you this, Naruto!" He taunted. "You sacrifice the few to save the many!"

"All life matters! Sacrifice is _never_ necessary, remember the Uchihas!"

"My conscience is clear, boy. Because my cause is righteous."

* * *

**Twenty days after Naruto's birth.**

Jiraiya walked through the gates of Konoha, greeting the ninjas working the entrance and exit control shift. He smiled at them and kept on walking through the village, exchanging jokes and pleasantries with the men who knew him, while the women who recognized him gave their deadliest glares upon his flirty grins.

He got to the Hokage's building and his smile dropped, as well as his act, his face taking on a solemn look. The guards let him pass and he walked up the stairs slowly.

The Sannin didn't send a messenger bird, but he assumes the new old Hokage was expecting him. He lost his most precious student, the Fourth Hokage, his friend – no. More than that. Jiraiya never married. He never had the chance nor the time to settle down and bring a child into this world but in more ways than one, Minato had been like a son to him.

And this son now had one of his own, Naruto. His father had named him after the protagonist of his first novel and made him the child's godfather. He doesn't take that role lightly and he promised to take care of Naruto were something to happen to him and Kushina. He intends to make good on his word now that it has.

Jiraiya finally reached the intended floor. He approached the door separating him from the man he came to see and waited for the ANBU guards to recognize him and let him in. After a quick look, they did, announcing his presence to the Third.

"Hello there, Hiruzen-sensei," he walked closer to him, a smile playing on his face. "Sorry. Guess I gotta call you Hokage-sama again, huh?"

Hiruzen got up from his seat and met his student half-way, not bothering to tone down his smile.

"I'm glad to see you again. Although I do wish it was under better circumstances."

"Me too. I'm so sorry about Biwako." Jiraiya gave him a comforting smile.

"Thank you."

Hiruzen's wife had died during the demon's attack. It was still a shock, as he thought he'd grow old – older – with the woman. She had finally retired from her ninja career to become a midwife, and he foolishly imagined he'd never have to lose her so brutally.

"I didn't come here just to pay my respects. I came here to fullfill my promise to Minato, concerning Naruto."

Hiruzen held back a confused look. "What promise?"

"Before they died, Minato and Kushina made me the child's godfather. So, I'm gonna take him with me on the road, y'know?" He smiled.

Hiruzen closed his eyes, taking the news in. They'd already decided on a legal guardian? So, this is what they really wanted for the child. Guilt coursed through his body as he tried to answer his former student sensibly.

"You can't do that. I'm sorry."

His smile dropped, "What do you mean? Isn't he in the orphanage?" His face fell even more as he thought of the worst. "Did something happen to him?"

Hiruzen didn't regret his choice. Danzo was right; training Naruto to obey and protect the Leaf from an early age and sheltering him from the resenting villagers was the ideal strategy to keep another massacre like the one twenty days ago from happening again. The child would grow up with the only purpose to serve Konoha, never knowing what the villagers really thought of him.

He will wear a mask on his face and no one will recognize him.

But if Naruto were to go with Jiraiya, he would be kept away from the villagers and still train under a loyal Leaf shinobi, a Sannin, no less. That, and entrusting Naruto with him was Minato and Kushina's wish…

Had he made a mistake? Was it too late to fix it?

Knowing Danzo, it most definitely was.

While the Root leader's plan always ended up serving their purpose to the fullest, Hiruzen often found himself having to do damage control on his behalf. This was one of those times.

"The child is alright; he's healthy and he's in good hands. Don't burden yourself with a promise you never expected to actually carry out."

"I can't sit this one out, sensei. This is Minato's son we're talking about. Just tell me where he is."

Hiruzen hoped it wouldn't come to this. He wouldn't lie to his favorite student but he shouldn't give him all the information either. He knows how Jiraiya feels about the ANBU.

"He's not in an orphanage, I told you, he's in good hands."

"Who took him in? Mikoto Uchiha? I know they were close with her."

Hiruzen sighed. "Danzo has the child."

Jiraiya's mouth opened and closed, only a small sound escaping his throat. He brought himself out of his own stupor, furrowing his eyebrows in anger.

"You handed my godson over to Danzo?"

"Jiraiya, trust me when I tell you this is the better option. For everyone."

"How is that even remotely true? He will break the child, turn him into a soulless soldier, is that what you want for the Fourth's son?"

Hiruzen growled, the stress of the situation finally wearing him down to reveal his true emotions.

"I am the Hokage here, Jiraiya. I make the decisions accordingly because I have all the facts. There are things you simply ignore about Naruto, factors that pushed me to make that decision."

"What factors? Enlighten me, _Hokage-sama_!"

The man in question bit his tongue as he glared at his former pupil. Taking a deep breath, he walked back slowly to his chair under the eyes of the Sannin. He sat down, joining his hands as he brought them in front of his face, his elbows resting on his desk.

"As you know, when Kushina died, the need for a new host was imminent. Minato decided to keep with the Uzumaki tradition, and sealed the demon in his newborn."

Jiraiya gasped. He asked. "You're telling me this child is a jinchuuriki?!" To which Hiruzen simply nodded.

They spent the next hour talking, screaming, arguing.

Hiruzen paraphrases what Danzo told him – _he'll either assure our downfall, or our security, which is why we need him here, with the Root._

And Jiraiya reminds him that Naruto is not an object, or a mean to an end but his own, vulnerable person – _you're starting to sound like him, sensei._

_I don't trust him and you shouldn't either, he wants your position!_

_Danzo has many faults but he is loyal to the Leaf. He will always do what is right by the village; in that I trust!_

Eventuallly, the man relents.

Naruto needed to be watched closely and the Root, as vile and rotten as he deemed them be, were the best placed to do just that.

With a few last words, Jiraiya left the Hokage's office, his heart heavier and a little more broken.

"I'll come back in few years to see him. If don't like what I see, I'm taking Naruto with me." His tone left no room for discussion.

He left the village that same day, after visiting Minato and Kushina's graves.

* * *

**Six months later.**

The tense atmosphere and grieving climate were still slowly dying out in the village, some people finding it harder to move on from the massacre than others.

"I just wonder where that monster even comes from!"

"I think it was always in Konoha! We may have been walking past a demon host everyday without our knowledge!"

"I'm disgusted. If I ever see that new demon in front of me I will spit on it for what it did to our village."

"He deserves so much worse!"

"He killed my father and my sister. I will never forget."

He noticed the change in person.

Danzo liked staying inside. He liked the comfort of his house and the security of his Root headquarters. He can add that onto the list of Things In Which Hiruzen and Danzo Are Total Opposites. Hiruzen was the light and he was the darkness. He was the roots to Hiruzen's leaves-filled oak. Nothing new here.

He has made it a point though, to tour the village any time he had the chance. He wanted to monitor its mentality following the Nine Tails' attack. The man could have delegated but he found it to be quite interesting, listening to other's people thoughts.

The news had almost immediately spread around, about the Fourth Hokage sealing the demon fox in an infant with real whiskers on his face. He didn't bother correcting them.

The village hadn't even seen him and they already feared him. It didn't take them long to start hating a child.

Danzo didn't think they were wrong in their sentiment. Their anger and fear are justified. The demon destroyed half the village, murdered the Fourth and his wife as well as countless others, shinobi and civilians alike. And the demon host will become just as ruthless by his hand, but they didn't need to know that.

He didn't care that everyone hated Naruto. Why would he? He's the child's keeper, not his father. It actually benefitted his plan, to have the villagers turn against Naruto; he wouldn't have to worry about him looking for friends, or family, or love somewhere else. For this to work, Naruto needs to be lonely and isolated. He can't allow him to have anyone or anything to turn to.

Now, the civilians didn't know anything about Naruto other than that he was the jinchuuriki. Although the child was a terror in his own way.

Danzo hated going out but he found that taking care of a child was even worse. He might spit on Naruto too if he were to see him right now.

(Here is a list of things Danzo hates:

1\. Betrayers to the Leaf.  
2\. Hiruzen.  
3\. Uchihas.  
4\. Going out.  
5\. Being thrown up on.

Naruto had comitted offense number five.)

He decided to leave his house for a few hours, coming to the conclusion that the brief satisfaction of killing the culprit wasn't worth losing his winning ticket. It was worrying, how impatient he's become since taking Naruto in. He's waited decades for a weapon this powerful and now that it was in his possession, he was just yearning to use it.

He wished there was some sort of jutsu to make him age faster. Maybe he'll ask Orochimaru.

The Sannin was still a Root member, although his missions involved research more than anything. His ambition for greatness and his experiments – often leading to the creation of powerful kinjutsu – were the only reasons Danzo kept him around after he failed to become the Fourth Hokage.

The both of them were like-minded. They both think Hiruzen is a weak, incompetent Hokage who will lead the village to its destruction with his incapacity to make hard decisions. It's the reason Danzo created Root and continued giving him counsel.

He is as much the Hokage as Hiruzen. He protects Konoha. He makes the decisions. He gets his hands dirtier than Hiruzen's will ever be. He just doesn't get the prestige of the seat or the credit.

Initially, Danzo intended for Orochimaru to become his new light, until the Sannin failed.

Acquiring Naruto, especially after the debacle of the assassination attempt, gave him hope again, and a feeling he hasn't felt since the First Shinobi War, before Senju-sama made Hiruzen his successor. He wouldn't have to be in the shadows anymore. He could become Hokage and lead the village from the front. He could be the light. And he wouldn't need the darkness.

He has been the roots and he will be the tree. Under the protection of his leaves, the village will prosper and bloom.

* * *

**Six months later, a few days after Naruto's first birthday.**

"Hokage-sama, she's here again."

Hiruzen sighed deeply as he made a vague motion with his hand, instructing the ANBU to let the woman in.

Mikoto has been coming to his office multiple times a week, demanding to see Naruto. He did promise her she would and it has been a year since Danzo... adopted Naruto? He still wasn't sure he could call it an adoption.

Truthfully, he hadn't seen him either since he gave him over to the man. He would have been worried about the child if Danzo hadn't given him proof of life a few days ago.

Mikoto Uchiha didn't wait for the ANBU to let her in as she pushed past him to stomp all the way to the Third's desk.

"So?! Where is he?"

She knew he couldn't tell her. It was just her way of building up to justified indignation.

"Not here," he replied.

Next, she'll ask when she can see him.

"When can I see him?"

And he'll lie and tell her she'll see him soon.

"Soon."

The woman let out a frustrated groan. They have been doing this little danse for more than twelve months and she grew tired of it ages ago. Logically, she knew that nothing could have happened to the child; if he were dead then the Nine Tails would have annihilated the village as of now. But as a mother, and as a friend, she couldn't help but worry.

Also, Hiruzen promised her she would see him and she'll Great Fireball his ass if he lied to her.

"Look, you can't see him right away but you can still... see him."

"What do you mean?"

Hiruzen opened a drawer and reached in to pick up a document. Mikoto narrowed her eyes to get a better look - her Sharingan must be wearing on her sight - and realized it was a photograph.

"Is that Naruto?"

He extended the picture, holding it between his middle finger and index. She seized it with a tremor in her hand and brought it closer to her face.

"It was taken on his first birthday."

Her heart jumped and she gasped as she took in the sight in front of her. Naruto... He had his father's blond hair and blue eyes but his face, his beautiful face was his mother's. From the shape of his lips to the shape of his nose, his chin, his smile and the glint in his eye; the one that said _I'm gonna cause trouble and you're gonna love it._ She let out a sound, between a sob and a laugh when she noticed the whisker marks on his cheeks.

Maybe she had been in denial, hadn't really moved on from their deaths. Maybe she needed to see Naruto to accept that it was real.

Mikoto bit her lips, her chin trembling as she tried to keep the tears from falling down her face. Hiruzen got up from his chair and walked to her side.

He put a comforting hand on her shoulder, "Hey, now. You know shinobi mustn't show emotion. That goes for kunoichi too."

She breathed out a shaky laugh, mostly just an expellation of hot air and wiped her teary eyes with the back of her hand.

"Ugh, let me have this. I'm still on maternity leave so I'll cry all I want!"

They shared a laughed, and she left the Hokage's office with a lighter heart and a picture for her fridge.

* * *

**One year later.**

Naruto giggled as he grabbed Danzo's chin, trying to catch his attention. The man let out a low grumble, exasperated by the child's obnoxious attitude. It seemed that ignoring him just made him try harder, making him even more annoying.

"You have a cross on you chin!" Naruto exclaimed.

Yes, he does. It's a scar. Naruto's made the remark several times, now. He expects him to suddenly find it funny. Maybe if he faked a laugh, Naruto would leave him alone and let him work.

But he won't. This is just the beginning for the jinchuuriki. Naruto will spend the rest of his life trying all he can to please him, to earn Danzo's validation and acknowledgement. So he won't give him that pleasure now, not for a very long time. Not until he's Hokage, until he's in the light.

(Will that make Naruto the darkness? He thought he wouldn't need one when he becomes Hokage because he's been that for so long. He guesses he'll find his answer in a few years.)

It's ironic, Danzo thought. He doesn't believe in fate yet he knows Naruto's was pre-written for him. And he was the one holding the pen.

He comes to the conclusion that to break away from your fate, you have to change someone else's, or decide of it. Kill them, love them, manipulate them…

That's what the village has been doing to him, and now it's come full circle, the cycle ending with Naruto, yet continuing with other shinobi.

Maybe this cycle is the only fate, the only constant that exists. That, and death.

* * *

**Six months later.**

"Do you have a picture for me?" Mikoto asked.

Hiruzen nodded and pulled the photograph Danzo gave him out of the pocket of his robe. Mikoto took it, smiling sadly at the image of the young boy. He was thirty months old, now. He must be running around and talking all the time.

"Did Danzo tell you how he was doing? And… what he's like?"

Hiruzen was about to shake his head, but something in the woman's eyes refrained him from doing so.

Mikoto had been coming less and less to his office over the past years. Her visits used to be almost regular; from multiple times a week, to every other week, to once a month… Now, she just swung by whenever she had the time, asking for the newest picture of Naruto (if he had one).

It made her feel like she was watching him grow up, like she didn't completely fail Kushina.

He wished he could answer her truthfully, but he couldn't even with his crystall ball. He hasn't memorized Naruto's nor the Kyuubi's chakra signatures and his Toumegane doesn't work in the Root HQs.

What's one more lie at this point?

"Naruto, he's… a terror. A real loud mouth, Danzo told me."

Mikoto laughed. "I wouldn't expect anything else from Kushina's son!"

Hiruzen's eyes softened. He marveled at the woman and her capacity to care so deeply for a child she has never met, as if she weren't capable of killing him if she had to.

"He also seems very happy."

Mikoto's laugh died down, her smile turning into something closer to a frown. She cocked her head to the side and looked at the Kage intensely, like her Sharingan was activated. Her bullshit detector never failed her.

"He's happy being locked up in the outskirts of a village he's never seen?"

"He's not a prisoner, Mikoto-san. He's used to staying inside. And anyway, would you rather have him run around Konoha, whisker marks on his face?"

"I would."

* * *

**One year later.**

_Dear Biwako,_

_You're marrying Hiruzen tomorrow. You'll be swimming in happiness and I'm already drowning in my regrets._

_What an awful way to start a letter. I'm sorry. You deserve more beautiful things. I wanted my letter to be beautiful, like you, but I'm a little drunk on sake right now and I've always been a sad drunk._

_The point of this letter is that I love you. I'm in love with you. I want to court you, and I want to date you and then I want to put my hand up your skirt. And I hate myself for being too late._

_I regret never confessing to you. I regret staying complacent as I watched you fall more and more in love with him everyday. I always assumed, or deluded myself into thinking that you were with him out of duty, being from the same clan. I regret all the time I spent convincing myself you two wouldn't last when I could've made sure you wouldn't._

_I don't remember when my feelings evolved from friendship. At the academy? In our genin days? Probably. That's when we started spending a lot of time together, me and you and Hiruzen. Even though we each had our own teams. __I don't know what drew me in to you initally. Your looks would be the most logical answer. Your beautiful brown hair, your mesmerizing dark eyes, your soft, tan skin and the eternal serious look on your face._

_No, that can't be it. Hiruzen has those attributes too and I hate the guy._

_Don't pretend to be shocked. He might not know my true feelings for him but I know you do; you're so smart. Maybe that's why I love you. __Or maybe I don't need a reason to love, but I need one to hate. It makes sense, when I think of me and you, and me and Hiruzen._

_I wonder what the others would think of me writing you a love letter (because this is a love letter. It's so obviously a love letter, I couldn't make it pass as anything else). I think they'd laugh at me. I think they'd say "look at this guy, he acts all tough and emotionless on the field but he's actually a big softie!" I think that's why I never told you how much I love you. I wanted to be the perfect ninja, the Hokage, Senju-sama's worthy successor._

_But here Hiruzen is, a better ninja, your fiancé and Hokage Tobirama's first choice. I'm convinced he hasn't made half the efforts I've made to become who I am and it's killing me._

_I think this was all in vain but I can't bring myself to accept it._

_I've lost sight of who I am. And I've lost sight of what and who this letter is supposed to be about, so I'll give you a quick summary:_

_I have so many regrets, but I don't regret loving you._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Shimura Danzo._

"What are you doing?!" Danzo roared.

Naruto startled and tried to hide the paper quickly, but the man grabbed his wrist before he could even move. He snatched the letter from his little hand and crumpled it into his pocket.

He slapped Naruto. He made it a point to only use violence when the child was disobeying him. If he hits him for no reason, his behavior won't adapt correctly.

"What did I tell you last time?!" Danzo shouted.

A tear fell down Naruto's face. "I can't touch your stuff," he sniffed. "A-and I – I can't ever cry."

Danzo slapped him again.

"Don't let me catch you again."

Naruto wiped his face, salty water and snot getting on his sleeve, and ran to his room which used to be an old storage place.

Danzo growled lowly. He thanked the Gods Naruto was too stupid to read yet.

He pulled out the letter from his pocket and tried to flatten it back. He doesn't know why he's kept it all these years. He used to hate himself for never sending it.

He reread the letter his twenty two year old self wrote, and cringed. Pathetic. Fucking. Coward.

She's dead, now. It doesn't matter anymore.

He wished he had Katon so he could burn the letter until there was nothing but ashes. It would be a good metaphor. But he doesn't (another thing Hiruzen has over him) and decides to simply rip up the letter.

* * *

**Six months later.**

It's Naruto's fourth birthday.

His training begins.

* * *

**A/N: ****i needed to fill the four year timeskip between the prologue and the next chapter. but you do learn a few things.**

**if you were expecting the story to immediatly begin with some dark/angsty/edgy!naruto you'll be disappointed. Or maybe not. Either way, you get to see him grow up first, see how he develops.**

**thank you for the reviews! I appreciate everyone telling me their opinion about the main pairing and i've come to a decision.**

**Please tell me what you thought in the reviews. Do you like Mikoto? Was Jiraiya right to leave? **


	3. It's Hard Out There For a Jinchuuriki

"Don't look away, Naruto."

Taking a deep breath, Naruto did as he was told and brought his gaze back to the horrific sight in front of him. There were bodies, dead bodies piled up on top of each other, and blood everywhere. Limbs severed and eyes clawed out. Skulls crushed, bones broken and the stench of death. He gulped, shaking a little.

Danzo said it was to prepare him. That one day, soon enough, he will inflict the same sentence on more than just a few people. Naruto nodded, bunching his fists. If Danzo said he had to, then he won't question him.

"This is what happens when you're an enemy of the Leaf. This is what needs to happen, you understand Naruto?"

Those words seemed to make more sense in Naruto's mind, matching everything he's been taught, and he brought himself out of his anxiety.

"Yes! I will protect Konoha, always!" He exclaimed, bunching his fists tighter to stop them from shaking.

Danzo sighed internally. He doesn't understand yet.

He could appreciate Naruto's enthusiasm to protect the Leaf, if only it were backed by the actual potential to. The child has been progressing very slowly over the past few months, and despite having an enormous amount of chakra – not including the Kyuubi's – he still had a lot of trouble molding it accordingly.

That and, his attitude wasn't what he imagined it would be. Most people brought up in isolation were quiet, obeying. Naruto was loud and distracting and even though he respected Danzo's authority above all else, he still... wanted too much.

So Danzo had an idea.

As much as he despised the Uchihas, he could recognize their ability to bring up powerful and seemingly emotionless shinobi. He remembered a story about Fugaku and his son, Itachi. Apparently, during the Third War, Fugaku had brought his son to the battlefield to make him see the aftermath of a gory battle. After that, Itachi had seemed calmer, wiser, more compliant. Danzo decided that Naruto could use some of that, too.

He brought him to the border near Oto, where a few Roots, following up on an intell, had intercepted a group of mercenaries headed for Konoha.

Maybe Naruto's just excited to finally be out of the headquarters, and that's why the sight of dead ninjas only affected him so much. When they'll get back, he will think about it more clearly and then he'll understand.

When they got back to the village, Naruto asked him who the faces on the mountain belonged to. Danzo answered, determining that it was a good teaching moment.

"The first one is Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage and the founder of our village." He didn't want to mention Madara, as he was an Uchiha and a traitor. He doesn't deserve to be credited.

"Cool! And the second one?"

"That's Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage and the Shodai's brother. He was the greatest leader our village ever had. He didn't fear from making the tough decisions because he knew they were necessary for our prosperity and our survival. He's… what I aspire to be like when I become Hokage." Danzo finished honestly.

Naruto nodded firmly, his eyes full of stars. His biggest dream was to help his mentor become Hokage and he always felt immense pride when Danzo said he'd need him to achieve that goal.

"And the other one, that's Hiruzen Sarutobi?"

"Correct. He was the Nidaime's student yet he didn't inherit his leadership skills, only his throne. He's a weak Kage who only got his position through connections and a moment of bravery."

When Senju-sama had asked from one of them to sacrifice themselves for the village, he had no idea that the Hokage was looking for his successor. Danzo was going to propose himself.

He was.

That moment of hesitation haunted him for a long time.

Naruto scoffed. "You're so much cooler and stronger than him, sensei! And the last one?"

"That's Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime. He was the student of one of the Sandaime's student. He had good intentions, but he made a lot of wrong decisions. He negociated nonsensical peace treaties with villages that didn't deserve them, backed by absurd and unfair conditions, gave a voice to some individuals that shouldn't be given a voice... and he tried to give the Uchihas more political power in the village."

"The Uchi-what?"

"Uchiha. Their clan constitute our Military Police Force, which is why they _have_ to stay neutral and stay out of politics. It was Senju-sama's idea, because he knew of the underlying evil in every one of those men and women. Thankfully, the Fourth died before he could actually accomplish his plans."

Naruto made a mental note. _Uchihas bad. Second Hokage good._

* * *

"You broke our agreement!"

"I didn't. The villagers didn't see him." Danzo replied serenely.

Hiruzen sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose harshly. He didn't know how much longer he could take Danzo's insubordination, disguised as necessary actions. The man kept bending the rules and his leadership hasn't felt respected since he took Naruto in.

"You should have warned me beforehand. But I guess it's easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission, isn't it?"

Danzo grinded his teeth. Hiruzen was implying that Danzo was coward when he was the one to abandon Naruto to him. He never appreciated his hypocritical nature. How was Danzo the coward when _he_ gave in to the easiest option?

"I'm not asking for forgiveness. I don't require it. Everything that I do is for the forging of Naruto's mindset and the benefit of his training."

"How s-"

"We only agreed that he should stay away from the civilians. That, and he never finds out who his parents were. That was the deal."

A moment of silence passed as the two men regarded each other tensely. After a minute, Hiruzen broke it by reminding them both of their Council Meeting in half an hour.

They came to an understanding using their time left; Hiruzen mustn't interfere with his decisions concerning the child under the condition that Danzo warned him everytime Naruto left the quarters.

Danzo scoffed internally. As if.

The time for the meeting came and they left the Hokage's office to get to the official Council meetings room. There, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane were already waiting for them around the table in the middle of the room. The four of them exchanged greetings until Hiruzen and Danzo sat down, announcing the start of the reunion.

"We only have a few matters to discuss," Homura started, "Danzo, how is the jinchuuriki's training going? Does he still go by his name?"

"Yes, it was one of the clauses of the agreement. He's not a prodigy, that's for sure. He doesn't present any of his parents' natural abilities, but he trains hard. His greatest talent is his determination."

Danzo had been very frustrated in the first months of his student's training. He imagined Naruto would be a genius, like his father and his mother. The child trained hard, though. It turned out Naruto was more like him than he'd anticipated.

"Sounds like he has the Will of Fire." Hiruzen commented, smirking.

Homura scoffed. "Let's move on."

"I agree," Koharu said. "Fugaku-san and two other Uchiha representatives came to us with a request a week ago."

"The same one? It's been a while."

"No… they want more; a seat on the Council. They argued that because Torifu Akimichi was in the Council before he passed, that Kagami Uchiha should have been in it too."

"This is nonsense!" Homura roared. "Kagami has been dead for decades, before this Council was even formed!"

"And because he never had that chance, they want one of them to replace him."

"Look at the timing! Why now?! This is all an elaborate plan to spy on everything that's going on in the village and start their rebellion against Konoha!" Danzo agreed.

"Maybe this is something that's worth examining," Hiruzen chimed in, eliciting a shocked gasp from Homura. "Kagami was part of Danzo and Torifu's team back in the day, just like we were part of the same team, Koharu, Homura. He worked under Tobirama-sama like all of us. He saved our lives countless times and he should've had a seat with us. It's about honor and respect."

Danzo hit the table with his fist. "Well that time has passed! If they really wanted the honor and the respect, they would have come forward years ago!"

"Listen to him, Hiruzen!" Koharu pleaded. "Our relationship with the clan has been slowly degrading for the past fifty years; if we give them a seat at the table, who know what they'll do with the information?!"

"Maybe it's because our relationship's so degraded that we need to give them a seat. This could possibly erase all the tension we have with them!"

Danzo growled, getting angrier by the minute as he listened to his rival's grotesque arguments. They had already let several Uchihas become ANBUs, and now this?

Hiruzen had already refused to start an investigation after the Kyuubi attack. Danzo thought that, the Uzumakis and the Fourth being sealing experts, the demon shouldn't have been able to escape from their grasps… unless a Sharingan was involved. Hiruzen had refused to believe it, the demon having killed multiple Uchihas, and closed the case.

He took a deep breath, and got up from his seat to round the table slowly.

"You're right, Hiruzen."

"Danzo, what are you doing?!" Homura yelled.

"He's right. This could potentially solve all our problems with the clan," he said, passing by Utatane. "Or… this could be the move that begets our downfall." He stopped next to Hiruzen. "Correct me if I'm wrong, Hokage-sama, but isn't it your job to always choose the safest option for the village?"

"The Uchihas are part of the village, too."

"But they're a potential threat. What did Senju-sama teach us, again? _The lives of the many outweigh the lives of the few_. And we're not even taking any lives, just a position they haven't really earned."

He watched as Hiruzen clenched his jaw and closed his eyes for a few seconds, and then he saw it; the look of acceptance.

The Elders gave him an approving look and he sat back down. The matter is closed.

* * *

Naruto was growing tired of training. He never told Danzo, because he owes it to him to do what he wants for taking him in, but training means staying in the quarters. Staying in the quarters means he doesn't get to see the village he's training so hard to protect.

He wants to ask him to go out, but he's afraid he'll be disappointed by his request. What if Danzo thinks he's not grateful for him? What if he thinks he's not satisfied with what he's given him?

On the other hand… he has been a good student lately. He stopped playing pranks on the other Roots, he's gotten better at taijutsu and kenjutsu and he's finally learned the basics of ninjutsu! Maybe Danzo will be swayed by that.

So he asked Danzo.

And he said no.

"But why?! The others are always leaving the quarters and going on missions and I'm stuck here!"

"You're not ready, yet. Become stronger, learn more than a few jutsu then ask me again."

"Please! I've been so good lately! I've -"

Danzo interrupted him with a slap.

"You think you deserve a reward for doing the bare minimum? You have no idea what it's like out there and you have no idea what it means to be a shinobi. I'm very disappointed, Naruto."

Naruto's heart dropped as he looked away from his sensei's disapproving glare. This was his worse nightmare and he should have just kept his mouth shut! From now on, he'll never ask for anything again, he'll only –

"But I suppose that, a quick tour of the village could do you good…" Naruto's head snapped back up, his wide eyes staring at Danzo. "Then you'll see why I didn't want you to leave here."

* * *

Naruto hasn't felt this enthusiastic since Danzo told him he'd personally train him unlike the other Roots. He ran a few miles from the quarters and reached the center of the village, according to the map Danzo gave him.

He started walking around, looking at anything and everything, memorizing every detail. The most mundane things looked absolutely beautiful when all you've ever seen are the same quarters and the same woods.

A few minutes into his tour and he started hearing whispers, and eyes on him. _What's going on?_

"Look at the whisker marks." Someone whispered loud enough for him to hear. _Oh, it's just that. _

It's probably because they've never seen him before. He smiled at the people looking at him and waved. He noticed a girl around his age smiling at him and smiled back before running towards her. He's never seen anyone close to his age range and he was excited to make her his first friend. He considers the Roots his friends too but he's rarely seen any of their faces and they always ignored him.

"Hey! My name is Naruto Uzumaki, nice to meet you!" Naruto extended his hand for the girl to shake, a big smile on his face. _That's all it takes, right?_

Before the girl could respond she was yanked away by her arm and Naruto looked behind her to see an adult woman shielding her from him with her body. Naruto frowned. The look in her eyes was far from kind. Like she suspected him of trying to hurt the little girl.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked away angrily, his head lowered. It bothered him even more when he noticed the villagers parting around him to let him pass. _What__'s__ everyone's deal? Do I have crap on my face?_

He walked through the village and the same thing kept happening, again and again. Until it got worse. Someone called him a demon. Someone spat at his feet. Someone threw a vegetable at his face. He never retaliated. He's supposed to protect them, not hurt them. This has to be a misunderstanding.

The blond saw a shop from afar and his eyes almost sparkled, thoughts of rejection leaving his mind for a minute. Danzo had compared him to a fish before, whenever he got distracted from practice. It was a mask shop. Everyone at the quarters had a mask but him and he had a few ryo from Danzo. Maybe he'll like it on him.

He compared the different masks. They even had ones like at the quarters, but the quality wasn't nearly as good. He saw one he really liked, white and orange with whisker marks like him. It was a fox mask.

"Get out of here!" A man said, as he pushed Naruto to the ground.

Naruto took a second to compose himself, he hadn't seen the blow coming. He looked up to find the man running the shop towering over him menacingly.

"Hey, what's the big idea?!" Naruto growled.

The commotion brought the attention of the villagers, who gathered around him.

_What's everyone's problem? What did I do?_

"I don't want you here, you're nothing but a pest!" The man answered.

Why… why was he looking at him like that? Why were they all looking at him like that? They eyes were so harsh, is this what hate looks like? They were calling him names now, names he doesn't understand. Names he doesn't deserve. Pest, bad seed, ...they can't just guess that he spends his days training to protect them, but why would they assume he's trying to hurt them?

"Here, is this what you want?!" The man from the shop asked, as he threw the mask harshly in Naruto's face. He winced when it collided with his forehead.

Naruto gulped and got up on his feet. The villagers were still looking at him and his face flushed, embarassed. He was frozen in his place, too shocked to decide of what to do next.

His mind was reeling, trying to comprehend why the village he was so devoted to didn't appreciate him. Should he even bother? Do they deserve it?

No, he can't think like that. It goes against everything he was taught, so it's wrong! Danzo's face came in his mind and he snapped out of his haze. He looked up to find the villagers' eyes still on him.

"What's your problem?!" He screamed, startling the villagers. "Stop, alright! Stop looking at me like that!"

He kicked the mask into a fruit stand a few meters away with force, knocking it down, and ran away from the scene, bumping into a boy on the way but not looking back to apologize.

* * *

Naruto got back to the quarters and the expression on Danzo's face when he saw him told him he knew what would happen. He spared one last glance to his sensei and walked into the mess that was his room.

Why didn't Danzo warn him about the villagers? Why did he let him go through that?

The door creaked loudly as the man in question walked in and sat on the bed next to where he was laying..

"Do you understand now, why I wouldn't let you go out?"

"To protect me?"

Danzo shook his head. "To protect them. From you."

Naruto got up in a quick motion and frowned. "But I want to protect them! What are you talking about?"

The man sighed.

"I think it's time you find out. Why you're an orphan, why you're in Root… Four and a half years ago, a Nine Tailed demon fox attacked the village. The Fourth Hokage sealed him inside of you, but only after it killed hundreds."

Time seemed to stop as Naruto tried to take the words in. They… didn't make sense to him. He tried to say something but no sound came out of his mouth, only air. He opened it and closed it several times until he gave up on trying to talk. What would he even say? What could he ask?

"I'm the only one who wanted you. I wanted to raise you here, away from their anger. Because their anger might trigger you, and leave you vulnerable for the demon to take possession of your body."

He gulped, "Th – the demon… in my body?"

"Yes, Naruto. But in here, you will have a chance at a real life. When you become a Root, you will wear a mask, and behind that mask will be the face of a hero people will adore, the face of the man who helped bring a new era into Konoha, as long as they don't know it's yours."

The increased beatings of his heart seemed as loud as Danzo's voice.

"What if I could change their minds? I could -"

"You won't."

"But I could! If they got to know me -"

"They don't want to know you!" Danzo roared. "You killed civilians, ninjas, the Third's wife, you -" he cut himself off, taking a deep breath as to not divulge any more.

"But I didn't, the demon did!"

"It's the same thing for them, they don't know the difference."

Naruto's lips quivered, his throat tight. He couldn't cry in front of Danzo – or ever – so he waited a few seconds, breathing deeply until he could speak normally again.

"You said something about why I'm an orphan… Was it the demon that killed my parents?"

"Your mother gave birth at the same time it attacked. She died during labor and your father died fighting. The Fourth saw their deaths as an opportunity to seal the demon in someone incapable of refusing and with no one to defend him."

The Fourth Hokage was even worse than Danzo had initially told him. And that was the guy the Third had chosen as his successor?

Naruto had always wanted to help Danzo become Hokage because he deserved it and Naruto cares about him more than anything. But this was personal now. The villagers hating him was a direct result of the Sandaime and the Yondaime's actions.

He laid back on his bed and waited for Danzo to leave.

* * *

"Mom?"

"Yes, honey?"

"Hm," Sasuke chewed on his meat forcibly, trying to swallow it quickly so he could continue. "Who's that on the fridge?" He finally asked.

Mikoto smiled at her son. "I told you, I was friends with his mom."

Sasuke kept eating his food, nodding along to his mother's words. She had told him this but she'd also never told him anything else. He was naturally curious – as most kids his age were – and wished his mom would elaborate on her 'friend'.

Why does she always use past tense? Who is that friend? What makes her so special that they have a picture of her son on their fridge?

"Ok. It's just that I saw him last week."

Mikoto's chopsticks fell from her hands, clattering on her mostly empty plate.

She wasn't sure that she heard him correctly. Sasuke saw Naruto? How was that possible? As far as she knew, Roots in training weren't allowed outside their quarters, especially a jinchuuriki like Naruto.

"Are you sure it was him?"

"Yeah, he had those whisker marks! He's my age, right?"

The woman was facing her son yet her eyes seemed to be lost in their own world as she nodded absent-mindedly. "Yes, that's him."

* * *

In a way, Naruto's recent behavior acted as a catalyst for his training, in the short run – he trained even harder, became stronger as well as smarter, his mind was evolving just like his small muscles were defining – and in the long run, as Danzo moved up the timeline for the second part of his education.

The months following their talk, Naruto had went out into the village every week. The result was the same; the villagers hated him even as he tried his hardest to make them like him, to get their attention.

(And Danzo got another earfull from Hiruzen, but what else is new?)

His need for a friend was becoming very obvious and just like any Root, Naruto had to get rid of those needs.

Emotional maturity was very important, just as important as his skills as a ninja.

"Naruto, I have someone to introduce you to."

Naruto looked up from the tantou he was sharpening, his eyes falling on a boy he'd never seen before.

"Hi, my name is Yu– um, Fuko."

"He'll be your partner. From now on, you two will do everything together."

Naruto broke into a wide smile and ran towards Fuko to trap him into a hug. The boy stopped struggling after a few seconds.

"Thank you, Danzo-sensei!"

* * *

**A/N: hope that wasn't too boring! there will be more action as the story progresses! and thanks for the last reviews!**

**Anyway, tell me what you think (even though not much happened). ****do u hate danzo? do u feel sorry for naruto? are u happy or worried that he has a "friend" now? anything else?**


	4. When It Rains, It Pours

Their tantous clashed with harsh clinks as the boys ignored the strain in the muscles of their arms. Fuko, who is less proficient in the art of kenjutsu, tried to make up for his level by putting more strength into his swings. But Naruto had more chakra than he did, and with a stronger strike of his tantou he knocked back Fuko's. The latter refused to give his opponent the upper hand, and took advantage of Naruto following his tantou with his eyes to also knock back his small katana with the kick of his foot.

They jumped backwards and away from each other when their weapons got discarded. For a second, they both stopped. Their movements stilled as they breathed in synch. Naruto looked into his friend's light brown eyes, reading only competitivity. His recently cut dark hair floated slightly into the air, following the wind's current.

The second ended, and in a blink of the eye they were fighting again, this time using only what nature gave them.

Naruto dodged Fuko's kick, and quickly pivoted his body to catch his ankle mid-air. Once he had it in his grasp, Naruto yanked his leg until Fuko's back connected with the ground with a hard thud. Not giving the opponent time to recover and keeping the ankle up, he put his foot on Fuko's throat, immobilizing him and announcing the end of the spar.

The jinchuuriki smirked, releasing his friend from his hold and extended his hand. Fuko grabbed it and let Naruto help him to his feet.

"Not bad."

Naruto scoffed. "That's my line. You know you just lost, right?"

"On purpose!"

"Yeah, right! Let's go at it again, then!"

Danzo, who had been supervising their training, walked closer to the boys. They stopped their argument and straightened their backs, mustering their most serious looks.

"Later. Take a break and then practice your ninjutsu. The both of you need to improve your Katon. Yes Naruto, you too. You might only have wind release, but you can still develop a fire affinity."

Naruto and Fuko nodded firmly. They waited for their sensei to leave to begin their break.

As usual, they walked deeper into the woods they were training in; it's not like they had anywhere else to go. Danzo only let Naruto go out in the village once a week and that was already considered special treatment. Fuko, on the other hand, was treated like every other Root in training and had to stay confined everyday.

Naruto felt uneasy about that, sometimes. Other times, he ignored the guilt and basked in the feeling of being special.

They had developped a sort of friendship-based rivalry over the past weeks and Naruto knew that Danzo expected a lot from him, and Fuko was sort of a measuring scale. He has to be stronger than Fuko or Danzo will be disappointed in him. If he is no better than a simple Root, what hope could he give Danzo to one day help him revolutionize Konoha?

"I'm just saying, Danzo-sensei is always rooting for you. I don't think I've ever seen him smile but the only times I've seen him satisfied is when you beat me!" Fuko said.

"It's not like that!" He lied.

He couldn't tell him. It would only hurt him and he was Naruto's only friend. He doesn't want to lose that.

* * *

"I thought we were having a Council meeting. Hiruzen, what is this?"

Danzo frowned as he saw only the Hokage seating around the table. Homura and Koharu were nowhere in sight and his intuition told him that what he's going to hear won't please him very much. The lack of ANBUs alerted him even more. If he were stupid, he'd think Hiruzen brought him here to kill him.

_Hm_. The thought was almost amusing. Hiruzen was growing harder to respect and fear lately. He was clueless, in every sense of the word. Nothing he could do to him could stop what was in motion. Thus, the notion that Hiruzen could be any kind of a threat to him was almost enough to make the stoic man laugh loudly.

"I need to have a word with you, and I didn't want Homura and Koharu to be a factor in how you choose to answer."

"Alright. Out with it, Hiruzen." Danzo said, as he sat down on the seat opposite him.

"I won't beat around the bush. Just so we're clear, this will be an ultimatum."

Danzo kept his eyes leveled with Hiruzen's.

"Out with it, I said."

"You either stop Naruto from wandering the village, or you give him back to me."

Danzo's eyebrows rose almost to his hairline without his permission. He didn't expect such a preposterous demand. What was Hiruzen thinking?

"I don't understand. Naruto has been walking amongst the villagers for months. Where is this coming from, Hiruzen?"

The man scoffed, looking at him with a harsh glare that betrayed his frustration. He looked at him like he was supposed to just—know.

"You broke the most important clause of our agreement. The one clause that justified me giving Kushina and Minato's son to you! And not only did you break your promise, you also didn't inform me! I had to hear about it from concerned shinobi and civilians!"

"So this is what this is about? It made you look bad in front of the villagers and you've had enough?"

Hiruzen ignored his jab. "This wasn't the plan, Danzo. The plan was to shield Naruto from the villagers' anger and to make him a protector of the Leaf. Behind a mask!"

"He'll wear a mask when his training's over."

"Don't mock me!" He growled. "Do I need to make myself clearer? Maybe you didn't seize my implication; you have failed!"

"Excuse me?!"

"Your job was to keep Naruto away from the villagers and to make them forget he ever existed, make them forget there was even a demon attack in the first place! You have failed on both fronts!" He shouted.

Danzo got up from his chair which in turn scraped loudly against the floor. Hiruzen copied him and soon, they were glaring at each other with the strength of fifty years of pent up emotions and rivalry.

"I haven't failed. Naruto is my most perfect creation. His only ambition is to keep Konoha safe. It's all he thinks about."

"That's–"

"He was nothing when you gave him to me! No natural ability, no potential, not even a kekkei genkai, nothing! And I've molded him into the perfect Leaf ninja. Is that what you would call a failure?!"

"Ha! As always! You act like a child!"

"A child?!" Danzo screamed incredously.

It has been years since the Hokage has been able to get under his skin. He hadn't missed it.

"Yes, a child! I call you out on your mistakes, and you throw a tantrum and expect me to congratulate you on doing the bare minimum!"

Danzo was fuming. How dare Hiruzen speak to him that way? He was the only reason Konoha was still standing and Hiruzen dared to call him a child, speaking to him the way he would to Naruto?

"I don't have to hear this! You are delusional if you think I'll hand over the child to you!"

"Then don't let him near the villagers!"

"I don't have to take orders from you!"

"Yes, you do! I am the Hokage!"

Not for long, he wanted to say (he wanted to scream). But Danzo caught himself in time, taking a deep breath.

"Don't let your pride get in the way of what is right, Danzo. Keep Naruto away from the villagers, not because I told you to, but because you know the impact it'll have on the village, and on him."

Danzo waited for him to stop talking, and walked towards the door. He's heard enough.

"If you don't, I _will _take actions."

He scoffed, closing the door behind him. Yeah, right. He doesn't have the guts.

* * *

Naruto took advantage of Fuko's absence to spend some alone time with Danzo.

(The boy was in the infirmery. He might have underestimated his Futon.)

He had some questions to ask Danzo, concerning his last name. Fuko had told him the reason Danzo chose him – he was from a renowned Konoha clan, and even though he didn't go by his last name anymore, he still practiced the inherited kekkei genkai.

Fuko had then asked him if the Uzumakis had a bloodline power of their own and Naruto found that he simply didn't know.

It would benefit him greatly if he did, Naruto thought. He would be on equal grounds with Fuko again, he'd be stronger once he mastered it and it could help him help Danzo become Hokage. Plus... even though Danzo had told him some things about his background, there was still that grey mystery that surrounded his past. He can't explain it, but it's as though whatever information he gets, some piece is always missing.

He walked into Danzo's office, remembering to knock beforehand.

"What is it, Naruto?"

"I was wondering if you could tell me about my clan, the Uzumakis?" Danzo had taught him never to bother with small talk, greetings and beating around the bush.

The man frowned (though, that was sort of his go-to facial expression). "I thought I'd made it abundamently clear; once you're in Root, you don't get an identity of your own, decided by your wants or your clan. I made an exception for you, letting you keep your last name but that's where the special treatment ends, Naruto."

The blond gulped, blood rising to his cheeks.

"I know… I'm not asking for me – I'm asking for the village!" He said quickly.

"How so?"

"Fuko told me you chose him because he inherited a powerful jutsu from his clan. I know I'm here because I'm a jinchuuriki, but I'm also from a ninja clan, so I thought maybe I had a cool kekkei genkai too, that could make me stronger."

Danzo sighed. "Sit down."

Naruto did as told, sitting across his sensei, his hands folded on his lap.

"The Uzumakis were a strong clan, chakra powerhouses that excelled in fuuinjutsu. I think part of why I let you keep your name was because they were related - loosely - to the Senjus."

Naruto beamed. This was new information. _My clan must be really strong!_

"Unfortunately, they were wiped out decades ago, only a few remain, scattered and in hiding."

Naruto's excited smile slowly went away as his heart dropped from his chest. Danzo had told him this before, of course, but hearing it in this context made him realize that he'll never have anyone to teach him how to use his kekkei genkai, if he had one. Thing is, Naruto is aware - sometimes excrutiatingly so - of how alone he really is, even with Fuko and even with Danzo, because he's it, around the village; the bond that ties clan members together. The bond of family.

Danzo was his family, Naruto thought. It was just that, sometimes, he wished he didn't have to work so hard for it to feel like that.

"There has been several kekkei genkai in the Uzumaki clan, such as the chakra chains. But I don't think you have the gene, or maybe sealing the demon in you also sealed away that ability."

* * *

Naruto finds that, for the first time, he doesn't expect anything other than what he's used to when he goes out into the village. The same thing happens, like a routine – he tries to fit in but only gets ignored. Well, almost. He's never looked this unenthusiastic in front of the villagers before, as their confused looks tell him.

When did he stop hoping for a change? Did he stop hoping? Maybe he stopped expecting, but there must be some sort of small hope buried deep inside him that compells him to keep coming back. It's not like he enjoys being marginalized yet he doesn't really have a tangible reason to keep coming back.

He felt something hit the back of his head before hitting the ground with a small metallic sound. He looked down. It was a can.

Most people steered clear from him, afraid of him after they saw him knock down a stand with the mask he kicked. But sometimes, those who knew Naruto would never retaliate would provoke him, trying to impress their peers or hoping he'll react and play victim if he does.

He really couldn't care less, so he kept on walking, his head lowered but, whoever threw that can started following him, accompagnied by his co-conspirators.

"Hey, freak! Freak!"

"I thought you were a big deal, why are you running away?"

Naruto's not running away, and were it any other day, he'd march on over to them to drill that onto their brains – he never runs away. Using only his words, of course. Today, Naruto feels drained.

He's a protector, that will never change.

The boy suddenly felt a strong grip on his shoulder, and before he could fathom what was going on, he found himself on the ground, facing the concrete.

He's a Root. He should have been able to sense them before they got to him.

Maybe his predicament was finally downing onto him. He's always been able to see the silver lining to his loneliness before but Fuko's arrival shone light on some aspects of his life he'd rather not think about. Naruto's always focused on being grateful for being taken in by Danzo more than five years ago. Then Fuko came, talking to him about clans, and family and bloodlines and Naruto had to face the fact that he'll never experience anything like it.

It made him sad, and it made him angry. Angry at the Fourth, angry at the demon, angry at the Third and anyone that had a hand in making his life what it is now.

Danzo is a saint for standing up to them. And he'll never forget what he did for him. He's forever endebted to the man.

Gladly so.

Which is why he couldn't fight back, as the teenagers kicked him thoroughly. He was careless, letting them get the advantage, but he won't just be used as a punching—

"Hey! Leave him alone!"

Now that was a first.

The pain stopped as the shadows over him went away, replaced by a single, feminine one. Naruto rolled over, looking up at his savior. A woman, dark hair and dark eyes. Pretty, with a side of dangerous.

She squatted down to his level and inspected him quickly, grabbing his little face between her hands. Naruto blushed, feeling uneasy. He's never been touched so gently before, only used to vice grips and harsh hits. His heart was racing, and it had more to do with her than the assholes who beat him up.

"Are you ok?" She asked worriedly.

"Y-yes." Danzo would have killed him if he'd heard him stuttering. _Shinobi never falter._

She smiled kindly and helped him up, then dusted him off. It was a kind gesture, almost intimate and Naruto had to bite his lower lip and bunch his fist to stop shaking. Her eyes held a very different look, one he wasn't used too. There was no hate or fear. Just... softness.

This was the first time he's ever wanted to protect a villager for their sake, rather than for the promise he made Danzo.

She grabbed his hand. "Come on, you could use a nice meal."

He let himself be led by the woman. She talked to him, telling him about her day as if they've known each other for years. He stayed awkwardly silent, which was a first for him. He suddenly realized that he has no idea how to communicate with people who weren't Fuko or Danzo, or actively trying to hurt him.

He kept his head down, trying to conceal his face, because people were starting to stare and he didn't want them to think badly of the woman for holding hands with public enemy #1.

They walked for a pretty long time, and Naruto wondered why she was leading him to the outskirts. He didn't know people lived there, other than the ANBUs, but on the other side of Konoha.

"We're here," she said.

Naruto finally looked up and walked into some sort of compound. It looked empty. She guided him towards the kitchen and to a chair at a table even taller than him.

The silence was awkward, uncomfortable, itchy and almost deafening but only for him apparently, because when he gave the woman a look, she was smiling at him as she opened the fridge, and rummaged through it.

"Dammit. Shit—fuck—sorry! Forget everything I've just said," she stammered. "I forgot to do the groceries. How do you feel about instant ramen?"

"I've never had it."

_Wow! A sentence!_

Apparently though, that was the wrong thing to say, Naruto realized as her face took on a half-horrified, half-pitiying expression.

"We have to fix that," she said solemnly.

Five minutes later, they were sitting next to each other, pretty closely—and Naruto wasn't familiar with hosting and lunch hang outs etiquette but he's pretty sure that would be considered weird for anyone.

(He doesn't mind. He feels more at ease with himself that way.)

And Mikoto—that's the woman's name—is funny, and pretty and cool and so nice, and ramen is definitely his new favorite meal.

"I can't believe you've never had ramen! We consider that a crime in this household."

"I'm only supposed to eat healthy food!" He laughed.

Her smile turned more wry. "Are there a lot of things that you're supposed to do, or can't do...where you live?"

He opened his mouth then closed it, remembering not to reveal too much about himself and his Root training. "I don't know—I'm happy with what I have so, I don't think so?"

She nodded like she understood. And Naruto knows there's no way she actually does; because she doesn't know him or Danzo or what the man has done for him, but somehow, he felt like she did get him. And it was enough for him.

* * *

Naruto came back to the facility, with a lightness in his step that both annoyed and worried Danzo. It was in Naruto's experience and in Danzo's plans to have the kid's little Konoha excursions be nothing more than a cruel reminder of everything he'll never have and everything the failing system upholded by Hiruzen took from him, so the sight of such carelessness made his eyebrow twitch in irritation.

"What happened today?" Danzo asked. Not _what's got you so happy_, but _what happened_, because he needs Naruto to understand that whatever he's feeling right now isn't right, isn't planned.

Naruto didn't seem to catch the connotation, and gave him his brightest, goofiest smile, the one Danzo had prided himself on eliminating a year ago.

"I met this woman today," he replied.

Then he proceeded to tell him all about her, how she's pretty, with her dark hair and her dark eyes, and funny, because she's made him laugh more in one afternoon than he has in the past three months. Danzo listened, keeping his face expressionless until Naruto caught on and stopped talking altogether, gulping audibly.

"This woman, does she live in the outskirts of the village? In a big, wooden compound?" Danzo asked with disdain.

The blond nodded, and Danzo's lips curled up cruelly, until they revealed teeth which Naruto was never really sure Danzo had until this very moment. Then the smile—if you could even call it that, it was more of a baring of teeth, scary and not at all contagious—turned into a laugh, so loud and so ridiculing.

"You fool. That woman is an Uchiha! Did you not see their crest when you went in?" He laughed, almost like a cackle.

"No! Her name's Miko—"

"Mikoto?" He kept cackling, "you mean the patriarch's wife?!"

Naruto's open mouth closed, his throat bobbing.

"But she—"

"Idiot. She was just grooming you! And I see it worked for her…"

Naruto turned around, facing away from Danzo and headed for his room.

"Remember, Naruto," Danzo continued, his laughter reduced to a small, amused chuckled. "No one has ever cared about you. No one but me even bothered to take care of you. And that woman? She wants nothing more than to use your power for her own selfish gains."

Naruto nodded and walked calmly to his room, closing the door slowly. Danzo saw the tight grip he had on the handle.

Once he was alone, Danzo dropped the smile. He bit the insides of his cheeks to appease the strain in the face muscles he hasn't used in years and coughed a few times.

The situation was not funny.

But he fixed the problem, just like he always does.

That's his job, really; a fixer. Underestimated by the people in the light, the people who could never do what he does, the people who blindly relied on his fixing. _But I guess that's what makes me so dangerous_, he thought, _I know how to do their jobs as well as __I do mine__. __And when the support will be taken from under their feet, the only way they'll ever look at me __again__ will be from the groun__d, with squinted eyes, like they're looking at the sun. The true light._

* * *

**A/N: when mikoto was in front of the fridge she was hiding the baby picture, if u didn't catch that. ****i feel like i haven't done a good job of conveying that, hiruzen isn't as incompetent as i wrote, most of it is just danzo's perception of him.**

**thank you for reviewing. it always makes me smile!**

**Tell me what you thought. Not enough fuko? any predictions about him? what do u think hiruzen meant during his convo with Danzo? of mikoto's choice not to reveal who she was to naruto's mother?**


	5. The Other Shoe

_i added a flash forward in the beginning of the 2nd chapter! you don't have to read it, bc it will happen eventually, but you can if you want a small window into the future of root!naruto_

* * *

Naruto didn't notice his change of behavior until Fuko pointed it out to him. It's not totally sudden, had he said, it's just kind of noticeable. Ironically, this seemed to coincide with Danzo laying off of his back, like a weird inversely proportional reward.

Sure, when he thinks about it, he has been taking his root training more seriously lately, but in his defense, he wasn't aware that he wasn't completely, one hundred percent invested in it. So, it's a good thing overall, even though sometimes, at night, he wakes up in a puddle of sweat, with a loud gasp, as if he forgot how to breathe.

He doesn't tell Danzo or Fuko. He needs them to trust in his capacity to handle the expectations placed upon him. And, yes, Naruto will admit that he allows himself to lose his head a little when he's with Fuko, and their training sessions often take a more… fun turn. But it's only because if they don't, Naruto is afraid that he won't remember how to breathe the next time he dreams about dying.

And Naruto loves Danzo. Not that he would ever tell him, of course. It used to be one those things he'd stay up all night thinking about; why Danzo taught him again and again that affection was weakness and something to hide, or crush. That affection or love or frienship—whatever—was something that only ever bred misery and internal conflict.

He started understanding only recently. Affection isn't bad, Naruto doesn't think Danzo meant it that way. It's just not supposed to get in the way of duty and the greater good. Maybe he doesn't get all the logistics of it yet, but Naruto genuinely thinks his affection for Danzo is different. For others, it might stop them for doing the right thing. But for Naruto, it would motivate him to. Because Naruto cares about the right people. Naruto cares about the people on the right side of history. His affection was a part of his strength, and he would do anything to make Danzo happy.

Anything.

But. But Danzo isn't his friend. Danzo is authority. Danzo is the light. Danzo is the one guiding him and the one guiding the village. Fuko is Naruto's friend.

And unlike him, Fuko likes to confide his feelings (it's not like anyone else but Naruto would listen).

Fuko's mother was a civilian. She died giving birth to him, leaving his father, a respected clan shinobi, to take care of him on his own. But his father wasn't apt to raise a child, nor was he mentally strong enough to handle the death of his wife. It's almost funny, Fuko had said, his father's killed a hundred people in cold blood but he lost it at the death of one person.

Growing up in that kind of household was tough. Fuko had his mother's eyes and his father could barely bear to look at him. "_I used to think he was just relieved to have me go to root, but now I think he's the one who sent me __t__here."_

Naruto had put a hand on his shoulder, comforting him. Almost saying, I get it. But he doesn't. He knows nothing about parents. Danzo is a father figure only in his fantasies and the only other adult that seemed to give a shit about him turned out to be just a good actress.

It makes him so mad. How all of these grown ups—the Third, the Fourth, the Uchihas, Fuko's dad—can just ruin children and get away with it. His only solace during those thoughts is the knowledge that someday Danzo's going to change all of this.

Naruto left the HQ for the first time in a few months. He refused to let these rotten souls get the best of him. He refused to let the villagers rot _his_ soul. He will protect them, whether they want to or not. And they will feel as stupid as they've made him feel.

They don't bother him anymore, though. Now, they merely ignore him, even the bravest ones. He's not sure whether they got bored or if they've had a change of heart, but he can appreciate the calm around him. It's something he always struggled with—still struggles with, if he's being completely honest—the silence and the calm. Naruto is agitated by nature. He hates staying still, so he assumed his training in stealth must have finally started bearing fruit.

Someone called for him, but he didn't look back.

Naruto kept on walking, because he remembered that voice, and it's the last voice he wanted to hear, especially now, on his first day out of the HQ.

"Naruto!" Mikoto said as she grabbed his arm. Naruto turned around harshly and yanked his arm from her grip. In the process, he realized that he was near the military police station, judging by the crest on the building beside them. "Are you okay?" She asked. "I haven't seen you in a while."

He almost wanted to believe that she really cared.

"Leave me alone, Uchiha." He spit somberly.

"Excuse me? Naruto—"

"I said leave me alone!" He repeated, screaming. "I know who you are," he continued. _I know what kind of person you are_.

Mikoto squatted down to his level, her eyebrows furrowed in concern–no, in false concern, and it only managed to make the jinchuuriki angrier. "You can talk to me, what's going on?"

He snapped. "Don't try to manipulate me! I know who you are… and you know who I am! Admit it!" At her surprised silence, Naruto forced out a laugh, similar to one of Danzo's, and continued. "Danzo was right about you. About all of you, Uchihas."

Mikoto finally seemed to react, and this time her eyebrows furrowed in anger. The mask fell. "Don't let _him_ manipulate you."

This really was the wrong thing to say. There's a line that you don't cross when you come after Naruto and that line is called Danzo. He pushed the woman with force, and as she was still leaning on her toes, she lost her balance and fell to the floor.

"I can't believe good clans like mine or the Senjus are dead or dying and the Uchihas are still thriving! You people are evil, Danzo is right! You should be dead instead! All of you!" He shouted. "You're the ones who actually… who actually deserve to."

Mikoto was too stunned to react, and Naruto suddenly couldn't handle the calm around him. He ran away when it became clear that the conversation—if you could call it that—was over.

* * *

"You summoned me, Hiruzen?" Danzo asked boredly.

He quickly wiped that expression off of his face when he saw the look of absolute fury in Sarutobi's eyes. It was involuntary, a reflex, but he mentally chastised himself for the show of weakness.

"You've gone too far, Danzo. I can't protect you anymore." His voice had almost no intonation to it, but the quiet anger behind his words was terrifying.

"What are you talking about?"

"When I told you to keep Naruto away from the village, I meant for good."

Danzo scoffs. "He has been staying away." Granted, not by Danzo telling him to, because he refused to be threatened and given ultimatums by fucking Hiruzen of all people, but nonetheless, as far as he knew, Naruto hadn't been going out since the Mikoto incident.

"He told the entire military police that they deserved to die!" Hiruzen screamed. "And that _you_ were the one to plant those ideas in his head!"

The color drained from Danzo's face.

That little. fucking. shit.

"Do you know how that looks? Do you know how it looks to have the most dangerous weapon in the shinobi world tell one of the clans that have been excluded from every political position of the village they co-founded that they deserve to die?! And that a member of the Council is the one advocating for said decimation?!"

"He's a fucking kid, Hiruzen! They shouldn't be taking him seriously!"

It was a weak defense and he knew it.

"Are you—" Hiruzen slammed both his fists on his desk. "They think you took in Naruto to wipe them out, Danzo! My hand are tied on this. Police or not, the Uchihas are still the most powerful clan of the Leaf, I can't afford not to take action!"

"Don't do this, Hiruzen."

"I have to. It's the only way to clean this mess you created, I'm taking back the child and I'm giving him over to them. To Fugaku and Mikoto. Only that will be enough to assure them that we haven't been planning a fucking genocide."

* * *

When Danzo got back to the main Root HQ, he didn't respond to any of the salutes he was given. He stayed silent, making a beeline for the training grounds in the woods. He noticed some roots glancing his way before he even made it to their side, and wondered if he was exuding some kind of Killing Intent against his knowledge.

Naruto and Fuko were sparring, and Danzo noticed that the blond still couldn't produce a decent fire jutsu. That only angered him more. That only reminded him of his own inability to produce a decent fire jutsu.

"Fuko, leave." He ordered.

Once they were alone, Danzo striked the first blow; a mid kick to Naruto's torso. The child was propelled backwards harshly, but got up as soon as he hit the ground.

Naruto didn't ask why, or beg for Danzo's mercy as the man kept sending jutsu after jutsu and hit after hit. He only tried to retaliate, show the progress he made, but he was still no match for his sensei.

He was black and blue now, barely breathing, the only thing supporting him being his chakra reserve.

"They might seperate us in the near future," Danzo said simply. His voice was still, and he hadn't broken a sweat.

"Wh–what?!" Naruto panted. "They can't do that!" He could barely articulate, his mouth filled with blood and his jaw badly bruised.

"Thanks to your little stunt two days ago, the Uchihas now have grounds to have me barred from the Council and you taken into their compound."

"I don't want to live with the Uchihas!" Naruto shouted.

"But you might," he answered. "And we've worked too hard these past six years to throw everything away because of a temper tantrum." Naruto nodded at his words. "So this is a promise: even if we're apart, you won't be rid of me. We will follow this mission through even if we have to use messenger birds to communicate. You hear me?!" He screamed.

Naruto nodded with vigor.

But this wasn't enough for Danzo. Naruto had fucked up. He didn't even know if he was in denial, right now, to think that he could still take over leadership of the village after everything. He'll admit it, he wanted to hurt the child. He deserved it, didn't he? Naruto might have destroyed years of planning. He can't just get away with it after a little beating.

"You will do what's necessary?"

"Yes!"

"You will obey me? Against hope, against affection? Against all discouragements that could be?"

"Yes!"

"Good. Because, you will have to… take care of Fuko, one day." He said, before leaving without a glance. He'd rather imagine the look on Naruto's face, in case the real one wasn't as satisfying.

It was a risk, to reveal that part of his conditioning now. But Naruto would never betray him. He will agonize over it for a while before completely shutting down all emotions. In a way, this might even be good for him.

* * *

"Let the meeting begin," Utatane said. "Hokage-sama, I believe you had something to tell us."

"Yes. As we all know, following the recent… altercation, between the jinchuuriki and Mikoto Uchiha, the Uchiha clan have raised their suspicions as to the village's—most importantly, our—loyalty to them. Suspicions which, might I add, were not completely unfounded," he gave Danzo a pointed look. "And while I at first had decided to give over the jinchuuriki to them in a show of trust and reparations, Fugaku-san and I came up with an alternative that I think might be better suited."

"And what exactly would that be?" Homura asked.

"I will be granting one of the Uchiha representatives a seat on this Council, and Danzo will be allowed to keep the jinchuuriki in Root."

All hell broke loose, as all three Council members try to reason with the Hokage. The screaming match is eventually won by Utatane.

"How could you do this, Sarutobi-sama?! Gods know what they'll do with this power! You should have consulted us!"

"Don't give me that bullshit, Koharu! One fourth of a half is barely power!" Hiruzen replied. "I have the final say so, here!"

"I don't know!" Homura shouted. "You _have_ shown some weakness when it came to the Uchihas. Who knows who you'll listen to when it will come down to the three of us against the one Uchiha!"

"I will listen to whoever I think has the most sensible opinion! Again, I am the Hokage!" He roared. Mitokado and Utatane rarely bared their teeth at him. They usually deal in passive aggressivity. "I. have. the. final. say. so!"

Danzo forces a laugh. "So you make all the decisions, right?! You make the _tough calls_, you're not one to just roll over and choose the first easy option, of course!" He mock-praised.

"You know what, you're right, Danzo! It was the easy option! It was either this, or a goddamned civil war!"

Danzo _tsks_. Hiruzen is so easily manipulable.

"I bet he even made you think it was your idea," he said, before storming out of the meeting room, and heading for the comfort of his Root office.

* * *

Danzo paced around his office and the agitation slowly left his body as he reflected on today's events. Today wasn't a total loss. Naruto wasn't going anywhere, Hiruzen will probably stop threatening him to take the child away and… giving an Uchiha a seat on the Council wasn't the worst thing that could happen, actually.

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, right?

* * *

**A/N: thanks for the last reviews! tell me your thoughts, pleaaase!**


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